


so forgetful

by GayKravitz



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Amnesiac Stan, Fluff, hurt/comfort but without the hurt, its just comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 08:05:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14765751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GayKravitz/pseuds/GayKravitz
Summary: Stan forgets that he brought Ford back.alt title: dipper and mabel teach ford how to play xbox





	so forgetful

**Author's Note:**

> i know,,,, i should be writing for die plenae lunae reversurus but i just had to get this written out before i finish the second chapter!!!!
> 
> No Beta Reading Or Editing, We Die Like Men

Stanley woke up with a start, his mind reeling over his dream.

Stanford had been in it. They were together on a boat, sailing around the world. Both of them chasing their dream, finding adventure and treasure. It had been so nice, even if it had been a dream. It made him want to work even harder to get his brother back so they could finally travel to world together.

He hadn’t gotten the portal working yet, but with the photocopies of his brother’s third journal he’d finally be able to pull it off. He just needed to follow the instructions Ford had left. They were so easy to follow that even a knucklehead like him could do it!

Stan groaned as he shifted and sat up in bed. He shuffled his slippers on and his robe and left the room. He heard the kids in the living room, and went to go check on them. Make sure they weren’t up to any trouble.

“You walk forward with the left thumbstick and look around with the right thumbstick.” Dipper instructed

“Then, if you wanna jump, you press the A button!” Mabel added in.

“Alright, I _believe_ that I’m getting the hang of this.” Someone else said.

Someone Stan recognized immediately. He felt his heart pound against his chest as he paused, halfway between the stairs and the den. There was no way. How? He knew that voice, he’s known it since _before_ he was born. How was he here?

Stan quickly closed the distance to the living room and looked inside. There he was, casually sitting in front of the TV, right next to his niblings. He looked up at Stan, a bright smile on his face and one of the kids’ video game controllers in his hands.

“Good Morning, Stanley!” Stanford Pines said like he’s been saying it every morning for the past 30 years. Like he wasn’t supposed to be on the other side of a crazy portal. Like Stanley hadn’t ruined his life. Like this was all normal, him just being right there in front of him and _oh, god, Stanley don’t you dare start crying now, not in front of the kids-_

“Lee?” Ford’s voice, _oh sweet Moses he’s really back_ , cut through his thoughts. The old nickname sent a wave of fondness through him. He stared owlishly at his twin, his hands trembling. “Is everything okay?”

“I-“ Stan clenched his jaw, his eyes not leaving his brother for a second. He was so old now, and yeah, Stan wasn’t really the poster child for youth but _god_ , Ford got old. His brown curls were all grey and he had deep creases in his face and a hint of stubble. Stan could see light scars across his face and even more on his exposed forearms. _Oh, lord, there were so many scars. What happened to him?_

“Grunkle Stan?” Mabel walked over to him, concerned. Stan didn’t even notice the extra inches she had suddenly grown overnight, or her braceless teeth. His gaze was fixed solely upon his brother. “Are you okay?”

“I- I… Stanford… how are you here?” Stanley whispered, and understanding flashed through his brother’s eyes.

“Oh! Oh.” Ford stood, placing the controller gently on top of the TV. “Kids, why don’t you go make breakfast, okay? I’ll… handle this one.” Handle? What did _that_ mean?

Dipper nodded and started to walk to the kitchen, but Mabel stopped him. “Grunkle Ford, should I get the scrapbooks?” She asked and Stan just felt confused at how normal this seemed for all of them.

How did they already know Ford? He’d never told them! He’d never even told them his real name! Yet they were just, okay with this? He would’ve expected a lot of freaking out from Dipper, this was The Author of the journals that he’d been obsessing over all summer. Did they not know that he was the author? Had he not told them? Had they not even seen his hands?

Ford shook his head. “It’s okay, Mabel, I’ve got this.” Mabel stared at him for a second before Dipper pulled her away and into the kitchen. Stan didn’t see them go, he just watched Ford approach him. “Stanley, what do remember from yesterday?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Stan asked, taking a step towards Ford. “You’re here! You’re back!”

Ford put his hands on Stan’s shoulders, the familiar feeling of six fingers was comforting. “Stan, please. Answer the question.”

“Why-“ He cut himself off at the look on Ford’s face. It was filled with nothing but concern. Concerned for him. Stan answered the question. “Ok, uh, The kids and I were throwing a party in the yard, to celebrate. I was mostly working on the portal but- zombies attacked us. I had to fight them off the kids, and we- we defeated them with singing?” Stan’s eyes widened. “Soos… he was turned into... is he okay?”

Ford nodded. “Soos is completely okay, I promise. He’s still asleep in his room.”

“His… Ford, what is going on?” Stan grasped Ford’s forearms. “How did you get back? The portal-“

“Is gone.” Ford said, his eyes serious. “I dismantled it after I got back. After you brought me back. Do you remember?”

Stan furrowed his brow because he did. He remembered that day, the agents, the fight- He remembered Ford walking through the portal and he remembered the feeling of a six-fingered fist hitting his jaw and the talk they had afterwards. “I- yeah. Yeah. I do. Jeez, am I really gettin’ so old I’m forgetting stuff like that?” Stan noticed Ford wince and he frowned. “You’re still not going to thank me, are you?”

Ford winced again. “No- Stanley, listen-“

Stan pushed Ford off of him. “No, you listen! I worked 30 hard years to get you back and you still refuse to thank me? What kinda-“

“Thank you.” Ford blurted out, and Stanley paused. “Thank you for bringing me back. I really mean it, Stan. Thank you.”

Stanley blinked. “Uh. You’re welcome.” He cleared his throat, obviously blinking away the sudden wetness in his eyes, and Ford sighed.

“Stanley, do you remember what year it is?” Ford asked.

“2012.” Stan answered. “Why are you asking me so many questions? Did you forget what year it was in your weird sci-fi dimension?”

“No, Stanley, it’s 2015.” Ford said and Stan raised an eyebrow. “2012 was three years ago.”

“I think I would remember if I missed three years.” Stan scoffed. “Did you scramble your brain with one of your weird science-y gadgets?”

“No. Stan, listen. 2012 was three years ago. At the end of the summer, in order to defeat Bill, you had your memory erased. All of it was gone.” Ford seemed upset just mentioning this. “We had to trick him so he wouldn’t hurt the kids.”

And suddenly, Stan remembered. He remembered the apocalypse, he remembered watching the kids running from a demonic triangle. He remembered switching clothes with his brother and the horror of watching as the one of kids were almost killed _just for the heck of it_. He remembered letting the demon into his mind and then there was blue flames surrounding them, and-

Stan didn’t realize he had started crying until Ford had wrapped his arms around him. He did the same, burying his face into Ford’s shoulder. His hands shook as he held tightly onto his brother, scared to let him go.

“What do you remember?” Ford asked, and Stan told him.

“He- oh, god, he almost killed them, Ford. We almost lost them.” Stan sniffled and cleared his throat. “He- He was screaming at me. He told me he’d give me anything.”

“He’s gone now.” Ford told him, squeezing him. “He’s gone. We killed him.”

Stan nodded, just holding onto his brother and swaying gently. “I thought they were going to die.”

“I did too.” Ford’s voice broke and Stan tightened his grip. “They’re strong, though. They kept fighting. And it payed off.”

“Yeah.” Stan nodded, adjusting his head on Ford’s shoulder. “They’re fighters, those two. They get into too much trouble, I can’t keep up sometimes.”

Ford laughed softly. “Kinda like us, when we were kids.”

Stan laughed too. “Yeah. Definitely.” He sighed softly, enjoying the embrace. “What else am I forgetting?”

“We’ve been sailing around the world.” Ford said and Stan’s heart leapt. “Finding treasure, having the adventure of the lifetime. We saw werewolves in Japan, and Hawai’ian night marchers.”

It slowly comes back to Stan, three years worth of adventures with his brother. “You wanted to look on in the eye, to see if they really would take you. I wouldn’t let you.”

“You blindfolded me, I couldn’t even get a good sketch down.” Ford smiled fondly. “The egyptian pyramids were fun to explore.”

Stan barked out a laugh in Ford’s ear. “Yeah, it was even more fun to destroy all traces of that bastard’s influence.”

Ford said nothing, just holding his brother as he talked about what he was remembering. The giant cycloptopus they fought, the vampires they befriended, the clan spider people that were actually really nice despite Stan’s previous experiences with them. At some point they sat down on the step into the den and just talked, Ford slowly helping Stan remember what he had forgotten this morning.

“Ah jeez.” Stan said at one point, wringing his hands. “I can’t believe I forgot all of that. It’s kind of embarrassing.”

Ford just shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Lee. We’ll always be here to help you remember.”

Stan smiled and stood, cracking his back as he did. “I think we’ve kept the kids worrying for long enough. I’m starving.”

Ford followed him into the kitchen, where the kids were trying very hard to pretend they didn’t hear every word that was said between them in the past half hour. Mabel was mixing ludicrous amounts of food coloring and edible glitter into some pancake batter, and Dipper was writing something down in his journal. Mabel grinned at Stan, her eyes bright.

“You remember now, Grunkle Stan?” She asked and Stan chuckled and ruffled her hair on the way to the fridge.

“Yep. Thanks for helping me out, kiddos.” He said as he took out the orange juice.

“But we didn’t help you this time, Grunkle Ford did?” Dipper questioned, looking up from his journal.

“You helped me out in the past.” Stan shrugs and drinks directly from the carton, garnering a glare from Ford. “So thanks.”

Mabel positively beamed at the thanks. “You’re welcome, Grunkle Stan! We’ll always help you!” Dipper smiled too and nodded at Mabel’s words.

“I know.” Stan sat at the table next to Ford, giving him a glance before drinking out of the carton again. Ford made a disgusted noise and scowled, making Stan laugh.

**Author's Note:**

> catch me at gaykravitz.tumblr.com!!!!!!!!!


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